While sometimes a title may say it all, it’s not always the case. Log Jammers sounds like an interesting party for people who love to dress up as beavers and well, jam their logs into something (pun intended). This time however we go back to the spirit of the eighties as Log Jammers is actually a new release on Nintendo’s very first console, the NES. We find ourselves in the midst of a conflict between man and zombie, who decide to duke it out on water based arenas, while balancing on a log, throwing aces to one another. This concept immediately made us frown, then wonder how developers come up with things, and soon after we were clutching our controllers like never before, trying to beat one more foe in this pong-like title.

Story

Well, there’s no real story value to be found in the game itself. Apparently it’s all about a big tournament of the Log Jammers, and there’s no real context why the undead are also part of it, but then again, a game such as this doesn’t really need a story to be captivating, or entertaining for that matter. You’ll be thrown into the gameplay after a few presses of a button, and that’s all that matters for a game that’s designed to be on a somewhat antique console. We were quite hooked from the get-go.

Graphics

Considering the NES is a console that was released in 1985 (1983, if you wish to consider the chipset of the original Japanese version), the game looks extremely spiffy by the console’s standards. The game is quite colorful, it has a diverse amount of different arenas you can play in, each having their own color tones, and there’s a handful of characters to pick from, each with different character models. The overall action onscreen is clear, but in some levels with more greenish color tones, it can be harder to see your undead character than a human one. Nonetheless, the game looks quite good, also has a few fun cutscenes at the beginning and it simply uses the full potential of a console that’s still popular for some developers to create games on, as this isn’t our first NES review.

Sound

The music of Log Jammers is superb, even within the boundaries of the NES. The music is truly catchy, gets your blood flowing and it never gets old, as the soundtrack is diverse enough to handle several play sessions in a row. The sound effects are simple and pretty much what you’d expect from a normal NES title, but they do the job nonetheless.

Gameplay

Log Jammers is an arcade title that has a lot of similarities with titles such as Pong, albeit in a fun new jacket, with fancy characters and a cool backdrop. From start to finish, you’ll be hurling axes at your opponents, or rather, behind them, hoping you’d land a few points by making it hard for the other player to catch your throws. The gameplay is simple, but the AI opponents are quite relentless, so a keen eye, good reflexes and a lot of practice are needed to become quite good at this game.

The game can be played in different modes, namely single, or multiplayer, with the single player mode having a few extra modes such as a single match and a tournament. The gameplay remains the same, as you simply toss axes to the other side of the fence, hoping the other player won’t catch your throw. After a specific amount of points, you’ll win the round, and after a few rounds you’ll win the game. The game also uses a few power-ups that appear randomly, each having different effects. One of them for example makes you automatically throw back the axe when you stop it in its tracks, making it easier for the opponent to catch it, as you’ll simply throw it back in a straight line at a slow pace.

Conclusion

Log Jammers is a fun project from Mega Cat Studios and it shows that old school consoles aren’t only for trips down memory lane, or to simply collect older games. The game is a lot of fun, even when playing solo, granted that you can withstand a bit of opposition from a hardcore AI opponent. The game looks great, even when tossing aside the capabilities of the NES, and the soundtrack of this title is simply amazing. If you’re into arcade titles, have a NES or a NES clone lying around, this game might just be worth it for gaming purposes, as well as becoming a great addition to your collection.